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Minor Fictional Characters in The Videssos Cycle
This article lists the various minor fictional characters who appear in The Videssos Cycle of the Videssos Series. These characters play, at best, a peripheral role in the series. While they were usually given a name, some weren't. Most were simply mentioned or had a very brief, unimportant speaking role that did not impact the plot, and never appeared again. =Posthumous references= These characters died before the story begins. Kodoman Kodoman was a Khamorth nobleman, who was killed by his own twin brother Varatesh in a dispute over a serving wench, sometime before the arrival of the Ronams. Who attacked whom first was long debated. Kuyuk Kuyuk was a baseborn man of the Black Sheep Arshaum clan, who overthrew the chief and took power. As the noblemen were touchy about obeying a lowborn man, Kuyuk hatched a plan. He took a spittoon and melted it down into an idol of a wind spirit. After they had offered sacrifice to it, Kuyuk told them its source and used it as a metaphor of himself: something that was once lowly and reviled, reshaped to be respectable. The nobles were angry at this trick, and one of their number - Mutugen - stabbed Kuyuk to death. The nobles all urinated on his corpse, and chose Mutugen as his successor. This was recent history at the time of the Ronams' arrival.Videssos Cycle: Volume One, pgs. 580-581; An Emperor for the Legion, chapter XI. Onesimos Kourkouas Onesimos Kourkouas was a Videssian General at the time of the rise of the Yezda. A little more than 30 years before the arrival of the Ronams, Kourkouas was horrified by the Yezda's archery and savagery. The Vaspurakaners at first thought them a race of demons, while some Videssians thought the Yezda were a heaven-sent plague to punish the Vaspurakaners for heresy - until the Yezda invaded Videssos as well.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, p. 396; The Legion of Videssos, chapter XV. Phostis Mankaphas Phostis Mankaphas was a nobleman from Raban province in the west of the Empire of Videssos, near the Yezda border. Mankaphas and a number of other nobles rebelled against the Avtokrator Strobilos Sphrantzes at the same time they were fighting the Yezda. Naturally, the rebellion was doomed to failure, and the rebellious provinces were defeated. One year later, another general, Mavrikios Gavras, led a successful rebellion and overthrew the Sphrantzes government.Videssos Cycle: Volume One, pgs. 76-77; The Misplaced Legion, ch. IV. Mourtzouphlos (poet) Mourtzouphlos was a Videssian naval officer who lived shortly after the life of Avtokrator Stavrakios. He wrote poetry describing the ecology of the Haloga coast which he patrolled.Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, p. 149; The Legion of Videssos, chapter VI. Mourtzouphlos (snake victim) Mourtzouphlos was a Videssian nobleman of the western regions. A few years before the arrival of the Ronams, Mourtzouphlos sent men to drive off a Yezda raiding party led by the sinister wizard Avshar. The next spring, Mourtzouphlos was swallowed by an enormous snake. A popular notion, that the snake was supernaturally connected to Avshar, was never proved nor disproved.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume One, p. 70; The Misplaced Legion, chapter III. Mutugen Mutugen was a nobleman of the Black Sheep Arshaum clan. When Chief Kuyuk, who had risen from low birth, tricked the nobles into sacrificing to an idol made from a spittoon, Mutugen stabbed Kuyuk to death and was hailed as the new chief. He proclaimed "Gold is gold no matter what the shape, and a baseborn man's still baseborn with a crown on his head." Mutugen was succeeded as chief by his son Turukan, who was still reigning when the Ronams arrived.Videssos Cycle: Volume One, pgs. 580-581; An Emperor for the Legion, chapter XI. Evphrosyne Sphrantzes Evphrosyne Sphrantzes was the wife of Sevastos Vardanes Sphrantzes. Her sudden death, one year before the arrival of the Ronams, left Vardanes eligible to marry Alypia Gavra, daughter of Avtokrator Mavrikios Gavras. Many people, Mavrikios among them, doubted that Evphrosyne's death had been of natural causes.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume One, p. 87; The Misplaced Legion, chapter IV. Timanor Timanor was a Greek educator who taught Stoicism to the young Marcus Scaurus in Italy. Scaurus remembered the consumptive Timanor wheezing, "If it's not right, boy, don't do it; if it's not true, don't say it."Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, p. 73; The Legion of Videssos, chapter III. =Contemporary characters= These characters either appear directly or are referenced as being still alive when the story begins. Haik Amazasp (An Emperor for the Legion) Haik Amazasp was a Vaspurakaner herald sent by Thorisin Gavras' army after the Battle of Maragha, to proclaim Thorisin's accession as Avtokrator to the people of Amorion. Although the laws of war stated that heralds may not be attacked, the city had been stirred into anti-Vaspurakaner violence by the hate preaching of Zemarkhos. Amazasp was horsewhipped out of town and just barely survived.Videssos Cycle: Volume One, pgs. 411-412. Karbeas Antakinos (The Legion of Videssos) Karbeas Antakinos was an imperial courier, sent by Avtokrator Thorisin Gavras to meet with Marcus Scaurus. After making his way past Drax' Namdalener mercenaries, Antakinos and Scaurus confirmed the former's bona fides with a countersign involving Thorisin's opinion of hot-tempered women: great fun, but wearing. Antakinos reported that Thorisin had led two regiments to Opsikion to fight off a Namdalener landing. Thus, Scaurus would not be receiving reinforcements. He also reported on the attitude of people in occupied regions about the Namdaleners. The country people of were resisting the invaders, who stole their crops and displaced landed families, but the city people found the new lords' taxes to be more tolerable than the Videssian rates, and regarded the Namdaleners as protection against the Yezda.Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, pgs. 185-187. While returning eastward, Antakinos was intercepted and killed by Namdaleners led by Bailli of Ecrisi.Ibid., pg. 192. Atossa (Swords of the Legion) Atossa was the senior wife of Khagan Wulghash of Yezda, and mother of Prince Khobyn.Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, p. 652. She was murdered by Avshar's guards during the wizard-prince's coup attempt.Ibid., p. 666 Azarmi (TLoV) Azarmi was a serving maid in the house of Khagan Targitaus of the Wolves. Borane (TLoV) Borane was the wife of Targitaus of the Khamorth Wolf clan, and mother and Batbaian and Seirem. Bryennios (TLoV) - POV Bryennios was a Videssian woodcutter whose home province was overrun by Count Drax' Namdaleni raiders. One day, while in the process of chopping down a mulberry tree, Bryennios saw a nearby village being burned by the invaders. At that moment, three of the occupiers approached him on horseback. Their leader informed him that they were searching for the bushwhackers who had burned a supply wagon and killed two guards. Bryennios convinced the horsemen that he was ignorant and stupid. One of them told the boss that they could talk to Bryennios' axe and it would tell them more. The leader then lost interest, and the three departed. Bryennios muttered a prayer of thanks to Phos, for his axe could indeed have told them what they wanted to know - the dark red stain atop the handle was not tree sap.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, pgs. 192-194. Damaris (TML-AEftL) Damaris was a server at an eatery, who was briefly the companion of the "Ronam" mercenary Quintus Glabrio. She and Glabrio broke up because of his insistence on having sex with her from behind as if she were a boy. She publicly accused him of being a closeted homosexual, which he in fact was. Doukitzes (TML-AEftL) Doukitzes was a Videssian soldier who was caught stealing, and sentenced by the Avtokrator Mavrikios Gavras to have his hand amputated. Tribune Marcus Aemilius Scaurus raised objection to this punishment as being too draconian, and convinced the Avtokrator to commute the sentence to flogging. Doukitzes survived the Battle of Maragha, where so many more capable men, including the Avtokrator himself, fell. Returning with the army to the Empire's heartland to suppress the Sphrantzes Coup d'état, Doukitzes perished in the siege of Videssos the city. Scaurus found Doukitzes' corpse, which had been ritually mutilated in a terrifying way by Outis Rhavas as an offering to Skotos. Pharos Gavras (SotL) Pharos Gavras was the first child of Avtokrator Thorisin Gavras and Empress Alania Vourtze. Born shortly after the War Against the Yezda, he was the heir apparent to the Videssian throne. Although he arrived a month prematurely, he was a very strong baby. The celebration of his birth left Marcus Aemilius Scaurus with a hangover.Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, p. 811. Gawtruz (TML-SotL) Gawtruz, a fat, jolly man with a fondness for alcohol, was the Thatagusher ambassador to the court of Videssos. Tribonia Goudeles (SotL) Tribonia Goudeles was the wife of Ambassador Pikridios Goudeles. She was a nagging shrew who found even the fastidious dandy Pikridios to be lazy and slovenly is his care for fashion.Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, pgs. 796-797. Khobyn (SotL) Prince Khobyn was the son of King Wulghash and Queen Atossa, and heir to the throne of Yezd. During Avshar's coup, in which his mother was killed, Khobyn was also targeted for elimination. However, it seems that Avshar considered Khobyn to be unimportant and therefore sent his weakest knife men, as Khobyn dispatched the would-be assassins with ease. Liscus (The Misplaced Legion) Liscus (d. 56 BC) was a Gaulish warrior of the Aedui clan, and an ally of the Roman Republic. A member of Marcus Scaurus' legion, he was bright, jolly, recklessly brave, and useful as an interpreter in Gaul. He was killed in action shortly before the legion was magically transported to Videssos.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume One, pgs. 6, 12. Lipoxais (TLoV) Lipoxais was the shaman of the Khamorth Wolf clan. He was a eunuch. Rambehisht (TLoV) Rambehisht was a warrior of the Khamorth Wolf clan. Ruelm Ranulf's son (TLoV) - POV Ruelm Ranulf's son commanded a squadron of Namdalener mercenaries within Drax' army. While en route to a rendezvous with Bailli of Ecrisi along the Arandos River, Ruelm was ambushed and killed by Videssian irregulars.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, pgs. 190-192. Safav (TLoV) Safav was a Videssian of Makuraner parentage, working as a waiter in Videssos the city. He acquainted diner Marcus Aemilius Scaurus with sizzling rice soup and other Makuraner cuisine. Marcus tipped him very well.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume Two, p. 399-404; The Legion of Videssos, chapter XV. Sirelios of Agder (TML) Sirelios was the incumbent King of Agder when the Ronams arrived in Videssos. Katakolon Kekaumenos was his representative in Videssos the city.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume One, p. 63. Indakos Skylitzes (AEftL) Baron Indakos Skylitzes was an officer in the Videssian army during the War Against the Yezda.Videssos Cycle: Volume One, pgs. 411-412. On the return eastward, under Thorisin Gavras' leadership after the Battle of Maragha, Skylitzes was killed in a skirmish with Baanes Onomagoulos' men, whom the Gavras supporters mistakenly believed to be working for Taron Leimmokheir.Ibid., pgs. 433-434. Skylitzes' cousin Lankinos Skylitzes later took the war to the northern frontier regions.Ibid., p. 642. Turukan (AEftL) Turukan succeeded his father Mutugen as head of the Black Sheep Arshaum clan, and was incumbent when the Ronams arrived in Videssos.Videssos Cycle: Volume One, p. 581. Valthjos (TLoV) Valthjos Buttered-Bread was a Haloga mercenary, and a lover of the Videssian noblewoman Komitta Rhangavve - who herself was also a lover of Avtokrator Thorisin Gavras. What happened when their affair was discovered was shrouded in mystery, but it become known that Valthjos, while theoretically in disgrace, returned to Halogaland with a new collection of gold and jewels. Valthjos and Komitta, and the other players in their story, were portrayed by an all-male acting troupe on Midwinter's Day in Videssos the city.The Legion of Videssos, chapter 15. Vologes of Khatrish (TML) Vologes was the incumbent Khagan of Khatrish when the Ronams arrived in Videssos. Taso Vones was his representative in Videssos the city.See e.g. Videssos Cycle: Volume One, p. 63. Alania Vourtze (SotL) Alania Vourtze was a Videssian noblewoman who married the Avtokrator Thorisin Gavras during the closing days of the War Against the Yezda. One of her first public appearances as Empress was at the wedding of Marcus Aemilius Scaurus and Alypia Gavra, when she was pregnant with Thorisin's heir Pharos Gavras. Alania was (presumably) a relation of Governor Rhadenos Vourtzes, one of the first prominent Videssians whom the "Ronams" met. =References= * *Videssos Cycle, The